Soul Smash
by Raven317
Summary: A series of random drabbles. What happens when Maka and Sole are stuck watching each other go insane? if Maka were to believe Soul and Black Star are gay? if Soul died, if Black Star broke the fourth wall? Maka/Soul fluff, some BS/Tsu, bits of Stein/Marie
1. A Good Book

**Author's note: **So, I have a new obsession with one shots. They're easy, quick, and lets me flit between my obsessions. PERFECT! I have too many chapter stories that I feel guilty for not finishing. Ah, well. This one is cute and light. It's realistic I think in terms of the characters. I know the summary sounds boring, but I think this is actually a good piece. Let me know if you agree/disagree/are ambivalent! Reviews are how it's done y'all.

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><p><strong>A Good Book<strong>

Soul entered the room exposing his shark teeth in a loud yawn. His bleary red eyes spotted his partner compacted into a ball on the couch.

"Hey, where did you disappear to for half the morning? You missed breakfast." Despite her slight frame that screamed malnourished academic, Maka never missed any of her four square meals. When she didn't respond he gave her a look.

"Maka." She giggled. "What the hell?" He walked around the furniture to get a better look at her and found a book practically pressed against her nose. Soul scoffed, crashing onto the couch and kicked his feet up to rest on the coffee table. Normally she would yell at him to get his fungus feet off the table from which she ate but she still didn't seem to notice his presence. "Nerd," he mumbled while clicking the tv on.

Three episodes of The Walking Dead later, Soul got the itch to get up and move. He slapped some athletic gear on and slid a headband through a mane of unruly white hair because it was the only way to keep it out of his face.

He sauntered through the living room, "Yo, Maka, I'm gonna to drag Black Star's butt out of his training ritual to shoot some hoops." He didn't even stop walking toward the door to tell her because he knew she wouldn't be listening. He wasn't even sure why he bothered.

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><p>Black Star lived in the same apartment complex, so it didn't take long to break into to his place. Tsubaki was meditating on a mat while Black Star counted off his 1,034th one handed push up. Neither of them looked up upon his entrance because their friend's breaking and entering habits were common. Black Star didn't even slow his pace when Soul sat on his back to add resistance to his work out. He figured he might as well help out if he was going to wait. The teal haired combatant launched his body a short distance into the air to switch arms.<p>

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><p>Soul dribbled and spun to avoid Black Star on his way to shoot. Both of his companions were very good competitors in different ways. Black Star's play was aggressive which made him capable at stealing the ball and traveling the court, but he always went for fancy skill shots that were beyond him, so he didn't score much. Tsubaki had a lot of natural talent. She was light on her feet and scored all net for every shot, but her mild nature got in the way of gaining possession unless someone passed her the ball.<p>

In a blur of teal, Black Star swiped the ball and traveled half the court before Soul could catch him up.

He bounced the ball high in the air to set himself up for a slam dunk but missed fantastically, "He shoots, and he scores! The crowd goes wild, they'll be chanting his name for hours!" Tsubaki deftly caught the ball of the rebound and flitted around Black Star's efforts to steal the ball back. She shot Soul a kind smile and passed the ball when she came into shooting distance. That was another thing she did. For all her skill, Tsubaki was a team player to a fault. Soul shot a three pointer off the back board.

"So that's 98 points for us and 15 for you," the tall weapon commented. Her long loop of black hair swayed in the breeze. "You're doing a lot better than last time." They had gone along with Black Star's assertion that he could compete on his own against his two friends because it would have taken them have an hour to make him concede that Tsubaki was the best player among the three of them.

"Hahaha! I'm winning by that much huh? It's to be expected of the man who will transcend god!"

"You're losing by that much idiot," Soul growled at him.

"Eh? You think you can beat me Soul?" Black Star confronted him loudly, radiating an aura of competition.

"I am beating you! I could take you one on one any day, punk!" They grinned evilly at each other while sparks of tension jumped between them. They attacked simultaneously. A few well meaning punches and a head lock latter, they settled down to take a water break with a more dignified Tsubaki who had known better than to try and break up the scuffle. A few punches between friends was how the men in her life showed affection.

"So where's Maka? I miss how she 'accidentally' trips up Black Star on the court." The teal haired star grumbled darkly while Soul snickered at him.

"She's holed up with a new book. I can't get a word out of her."

Tsubaki started, "You mean The Soul Reaper's Folly came out today?"

"Where are you going so suddenly?" Black Star asked confused.

"To the store. I _have_ to buy that book!" she shouted over her shoulder.

"Women," Black Star said incredulously. Soul nodded in agreement.

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><p>"I'm home," Soul announced with a dopey sun at his back, drooling at the edge of the horizon. He leaned against the door frame and shook his head. It looked like his partner hadn't moved an inch. "Is this really how you're going to spend you're entire day off from school? You read so much as it is, this is ridiculous!" He glared at her for a while.<p>

"Hey Maka, I'm all sweaty and I'm gonna sit on the couch!" He dove onto the couch and rolled around to make sure there was no question that it had soaked up a fair amount of sweat. That should have earned him a one way ticket to a hospital bed via a 300 page hard back.

He stomped into the kitchen and rummaged around the fridge. He returned and carefully placed the stalks of fungi on top of his partner's loose dirty blond hair. "Hey Maka! You've been inside so long that mushrooms are growing out of your head!" Her eyes continued to scan the pages at a rapid but measured pace. He growled and snatched them off her head in one swipe. He bitterly chomped a large chunk out of one of them.

Soul ran back into the room with Maka's favorite teddy bear and a pair of scissors. "Hey Maka! I'm thinking about adopting Dr. Stein as my role model so I'm gonna dissect Arnold and rearrange his limbs." He snipped the air a few times for dramatic effect but she only turned a page with a dry rustle. He was almost curious enough to see what would happen if he went through with it, but the weapon decided he valued his life too much.

He returned empty handed and took in the silence. "FIRE!" he shouted suddenly, but she didn't bat an eye. "I'm just going to strip right here in front of you Maka, is that ok?" he asked throwing his shirt off. He waited again for a reaction but was predictably disappointed. The girl was a prude. If she weren't stuck in novel nation her head would have exploded. She had accidentally walked in on him in the shower once and acted awkward around him for a week afterwards even though he had been concealed by the shower curtain when she came in. Soul decided that making anymore of an effort to gain her attention would be uncool, so he decided to wash up.

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><p>By the time he finished up it was past time for dinner, and it was his turn to get food. When it was Maka's turn she usually ordered take out, but Soul was partial to cooking. He tossed a pot of water onto the stove and heated up a buttered pan.<p>

Ten minuets later he heard the soft padding of bare feet on the tile. He did a double take when he realized that it was Maka and not the emperor of China. A visit from a foreign dignitary more likely at the moment than getting Maka's nose out of her book.

"What time is it?" she asked softly.

"7:30."

"P.M.?!"

He quirked an eyebrow at her, "Yes Maka, the sun's gone down."

"No way! I haven't eaten anything all day!" her stomach snarled right on cue. She clutched it in pain and groaned. "I smelled your cooking and the beast woke up." She stuck her nose into the air and inhaled deeply, "Are you making my favorite?" she asked in an odd tone.

"Yup."

"With the-"

"Pork slices, green onion, and sprouts. Yeah." He plopped more pork on the skillet and it sizzled enticingly. Soul chuckled at his partner's expression of longing. "You can't have any if you're going to read that book while we eat!"

"What?! But it was jus-"

"I don't care! I've been trying to get you're attention all day and you flat walled me. I don't feel like sharing my food with an absent person. I'll eat it all myself, and you know I can."

"I thought I heard a buzzing sometimes," she mumbled. It annoyed him how long it took her to decide what to do. "Alright! Fine, I'll be nice to you."

"Eating my food and treating me like a person is your version of being nice?" he countered.

"How's this, I'll do the dishes after dinner and you can have my undivided attention for the rest of the night."

Soul smirked- and that's how you get out of doing dishes, "Deal. Is that book thing really that good?"

"Yes," she replied without a second's hesitation. "He's my favorite author of all time. All of his characters are so interesting, his writing is so eloquent that you can picture everything, there's action, violence, romance, mystery, humor . . . it's everything you could want in a book."

"Hmph."

They settled down with their ramen to watch a movie that Soul had been waiting to see for a month. It was supposed to be really good, but the longer it went on the more he realized that it had no story. The action and graphics were fantastic, so he watched it for the mindless aesthetic appeal until he got bored and turned to ask Maka if she wanted to do something else. She was asleep with her face sliding gracelessly down a pillow. He snorted, then he realized that she was supposed to do the dishes. He would just make her do them tomorrow morning. With Maka asleep, he struggled to think of something to entertain himself with. Homework was out of the question. He glanced at the barely one day old book whose spine was already broken. A surprising amount of curiosity washed over him.

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><p>Maka blinked in the lamp light after being woken up by the sound of raucous laughter. She scrubbed her eyes wondering if this was one of those dreams you have after you thought you've already woken up. Soul was reclining on the couch reading her book.<p>

"This stuff's not half bad."

The meister sat in confusion for a few moments. "If I'm not allowed to read anymore tonight, then you can't read it either," she said trying to grab the book from Soul. He evaded her.

"You were asleep and I got bored. You should go to bed."

"You wanted to do something together," she argued.

"You're too tired to do anything. Look, I can see the bags under your eyes," she said pointing at her face. "You look like a zombie. How early did you get up to buy this book anyway?"

"I wouldn't be tired if I were reading," she snapped making another grab for the book by reaching across Soul's body.

"You just want to hog the book for yourself! You're addicted Maka. I hear you can get professional help for that- although, when they start on you they'll probably incarcerate you for life in the looney bin."

"You're being obnoxious, give me my book back!" she persisted sprawling across him to reach her goal.

"Ok, compromise. How about we share."

"What?" She was too baffled to keep reaching. Soul turned her body so that she was leaning comfortably against him and then he held the book in front of the both of them. "This is never going to work. I'm way ahead of you," Maka grumbled but her attempt at annoyance sounded weak. "But I guess you can borrow it for tonight." She wriggled down a bit and closed her eyes. Soul only had to bend two inches to kiss the top of her head. Maka's eyes flew open and her face flooded with heat. Soul could see the tips of her ears turning red. He smirked and turned the page.


	2. Roy G Biv

**Author's note: **Honestly, I had intended for the first story to be a one shot, but as I already know, I have no self control. I have no idea how much I'll write, just depends on inspiration I guess. (Just fyi, reviews are great inspiration)

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><p><strong>Roy G Biv<strong>

Maka sat scratching out her first essay at light speed for her advanced placement class. Soul and Black Star were collaborating together on the floor for one of those stereotypical "where do you see yourself in 10 years" first of the year assignments.

"Ya Hoo! My arms look ripped! Yeah, like that, but make my fist bigger. OH! I'll draw some blood exploding out of his nose.

"Yo, toss me the eraser."

"Dude, your face is awesome!"

"Mm, not cool enough." After living with Soul for years she had become very adapt at drowning out distractions. It was a very useful skill, especially when Black Star became involved. She finished the last line with a flourish of her pin and checked her watch. Eleven minuets and twenty eight seconds. It wasn't a record, but it was still dang good. She strolled over to the boys to check out what they were making. Of corse they had decided to go down an unorthodox route by coloring instead of writing the assigned thousand word essay.

She froze in shock, wide emerald eyes unable to look away from what she saw, "Holy shinigami . . ."

"What's wrong Maka?" Soul asked curiously.

"Bahaha! Isn't it obvious? Just look at her face. She's been blinded by our god like artistic powers," Black Star proclaimed loudly.

"You should shut your mouth before something flies into it," the silver haired weapon commented dryly. The picture was of taller and more muscular versions of the teenagers, though Soul had chosen to keep some of the litheness of his body. They were kicking the crap out of a load of bad souls, but the most shocking part was the bold choice of a background.

"How did I never notice after all this time? I mean I knew you were close but- And that time the two of you were locked together in- oh, this explains so much."

Black Star turned to his partner, "What is she muttering about? No need to be shy, just praise our art already!"

Maka gasped loudly and clapped her hands together, "Does this mean you're a couple now? Does Tsubaki know? I swear, if you told her before me- I thought if it was anyone it would be Kid, but there you go. This brings down my prospects for finding a boyfriend even more statistically speaking but, oh this is so exciting!"

Soul growled in frustration and barked out, "Would you shut up already and tell us what the heck you're talking about?"

The technician's eyes sparkled, "I've never had gay friends before!" Soul's whole body turned ghost white. His blank eyes bulged and his jaw went slack like he had been K. but Black Star burst out laughed.

"Where the hell did that come from?"

Maka looked confused and pointed at the drawing, "This is like your coming out of the closet thing right? I mean, that rainbow is really blatant," she said shielding her eyes with a hand from the brightness.

"WE ARE NOT GAY!" Soul burst out

"Actually we couldn't decide how to color the background to make it the most epic so we decided to use all of them," the ninja assassin shrugged. "Neither of us really thought about the symbolism. We can still use it though right?" he said the last part to his homework partner.

"NO!" Soul took a swing at his friend but he easily ducked below the strike. "Whoa guys, I'm fine with all this, but can you get a room room if you're gonna get physical? I'm not big on PDA."

"Maka-" the weapon warned.

"Oh come on, look at it!" She gestured at the picture and took a stance with her fists on her hips, "I'm Fabulous Man and this is my side kick Pretty Boy. We'll save the day with our rainbow sparkle powers!" Soul was growing more and more tense.

After his laughter subsided Black Star wiped his eyes."Yeah, I'M not offended by it, but we're not actually gay. We just wanted everyone in the business of fighting to know whose on top."

Maka looked thoughtful for a moment, "I think Soul would top."

"No way! I would totally top!" Black Star shouted indignantly. Soul was suddenly on his feet like he couldn't take anymore. He reached his partner in two long strides, snatched the front of her shirt in his fist, and took her lips in a fierce kiss that stole her breath.

He pulled away just far enough to bore his red gaze into her own eyes, "Not. Gay." He smirked dangerously at her expression, "You ever want more proof . . ." For a moment she thought he was going to kiss her again but instead she felt his warm breath make her ear tingle ". . . you know where to find me." The silver haired teenager brushed passed her and disappeared into his room. Maka released a shaky breath that she didn't realize she had been holding. She touched a finger to her lower lip finding a small spot of blood. One of his razor teeth must have grazed her. The danger of Soul's physical affection gave her a strange new feeling that she couldn't place.

"Damn," Black Star piped up in awe from his spot on the floor.


	3. Half of a Whole

**Author's note: WARNING! **This one is super depressing/angsty and I was going to wait until later to post this so it would maybe soften the blow but I couldn't wait. I loved it (because I'm all kinds of twisted) so much I had to post it sooner rather than later.

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><p><strong>Half of a Whole<strong>

If he had learned anything in all his nineteen years in this world, it was that there was alway someone stronger. Even after becoming a death scythe, there were still enemies who could bring even Maka to her knees, like the dagger wielder they were pitted against now. Ever since he had swallowed the witch's kishin egg, Soul Eater could automatically keep stats tabs on the battles they fought, and this one was looking particularly grim. Maka had sustained several small but deep cuts, one of them had sliced a muscle in her left calf that severely limited her mobility. Her blood pressure had dropped from the blood loss, and her overall fighting power had dropped to 64% and she was struggling to keep her soul resinating with his. Her breath came in ragged puffs.

"This isn't looking good. You need to find a way to pull out," his voice echoed metallically from the scythe.

"You want me to run?" his partner laughed weekly. "I can't do that. This guy raids orphanages. You were the one yelling about how uncool that is."

"Maka, we can't win!" he said just as their foe made a super human leap to get inside Maka's reach. Her reaction was too sluggish to stave him off, and Soul knew that the next attack would kill her. He turned back into a human unprompted and body blocked the attack. The knife was so sharp that he couldn't even feel its' sting for the first few moments. Then his body convulsed and blood sprayed from his mouth and gushed from the slash. Maka screamed his name. Then she bellowed like an angry animal and tackled their greasy haired foe. Soul collapsed on his back and tried to endure the burning cut that was making the devil in his mind scream and writhe on the ground. Pitiful. He had a clear view of the moon's eyes glowing with insanity as he watched their fight. Bloody drool oozed around the teeth he was grinding in excitement.

Soul could hear hacking and gurgling like Maka was choking the life out of their enemy. Then he heard the sound of a blade cutting flesh and Maka's cry of pain rang out. Another wound he couldn't heal. With another stabbing sound, everything was silent. Soul's heartbeat vibrated like a humming bird at the horrifying prospect of the death of his second half.

Maka's dirt streaked face appeared in the sky and the strength of his relief made him cough, then gasp in pain, "Shit, I'd thought you died."

"No! No, he's dead and we're alive. We win, so everything's going to be fine," her voice trembled. She sized up his wound and her face paled, "Oh gods. Ok. Alright, I can fix this. Just gotta stop the bleeding." Her hands shuffled around the sticky mess of Soul's torso trying to find a position that would cover the whole cut, but it was impossible. The cut was too long and it was very deep. She applied pressure anyway and the pain elicited a tortured sound from the lips of her partner. Fat tears ran done Maka's cheeks as she sobbed once.

"DAMN IT Soul! Why do you always have to jump in front of me like that? Why can't you just-" her hands fell away and splashed into the growing pool of scarlet. She looked up as ice cold finger tips ran up her cheek to cup the side of her face and a thumb brushed away some tears.

"It's ok," he whispered. "Everyone's gotta choose something in this world that they're willing to die for, and I chose you a long time ago."

His hand started to slip but she held it there for him, "I never asked you to die for me. It isn't fair," she said softly. He thought of how Maka's face should never look said like this. He remembered how she always ate with more gusto when he cooked, the way her eyes looked a thousand miles away when she listened to him play the piano, how he spit out her horrid soup when she was nursing him back to health from a cold, the mischief of her two second secret smile whenever he did something stupid, the crinkle between her eyebrows when she concentrated on her studies, the way she curled into a ball when she lost herself in a book.

Soul smirked, "Turns out the world isn't a wish granting factory."

She smiled back at him, "You idiot, you've been stealing my books again haven't you."

"Snob,"

"Prick,"

"Nerd,"

"Freak," He tried to suppress a groan of pure physical pain. He could feel the strength leeching from his body at a dizzying rate. There were so many things he had never said to her.

"I love you Soul Eater Evan," Maka managed past a lump in her throat. There it was. Her hands streaked the pale skin with his own blood as she held his face and bent over him. She kissed him tenderly, then grew more desperate when he stopped responding. By the time she pulled away he was gone. Her body was wracked with emotional pain as she buried her face in her partner's lifeless chest. On a nearby fence a cat bristled and hissed at the inhuman wail that pierced the night.

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><p>Soul appeared in her dream that night. He embraced her like he never had in reality, like he would never have the chance to do in the future. They clung to that illusory warmth.<p>

"Promise me Maka, promise me you'll get over yourself and move on," he could feel her smile on his neck.

"Can't do that. You know I'm far too selfish."

"I'll be watching. Everyday."

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><p><strong>Afterward:<strong> Ok, so my goal with this one was to elicit some really strong emotion. Please review and tell me if my writing prowess is up to par on that or not! Also, I swear upon the bones of Sisyphus the hamster that the next post will be super sweet!


	4. Ice Cream

**Author's note: **As promised, something nice and fluffy. It's kind of fun to think about what they were all like when they were kids. And this is about the length that I wanted all of the pieces to be but that doesn't work too well for me all the time. Ah well.

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><p><strong>Ice cream<strong>

Soul Eater crept up on yet another unsuspecting little kid in the park. She looked so happy in her sun dress with her dairy treat and her blond pig tails. He waited until her head was turned. He opened his jaws, tongue lolling out, inched closer and closer until CRUNCH! He snapped up her entire scoop of ice cream and most of the cone in one huge bite. A familiar look of confusion regarded him which morphed into shock when she noticed her lack of desert.

She didn't sit in shock.

She didn't yell in a shaky voice for her mommy.

She didn't cry.

This one threw down what was left of her cone with a surprising amount of fury for one so delicate looking and shouted, "You bastard!" The tables had turned. His own eyes widened with shock while his cheeks were still bulging and vanilla ice cream dribbled down his chin. He had to swallow quickly and deal with the brain freeze while he scrambled away from the crazy girl chasing after him.

Soul's brain pain put him at a disadvantage, so the girl quickly caught up to him and managed to trip him. She sat on him so he couldn't move and he was forced to look at the intense scowl in her green eyes. When she raised a hand he squeezed his eyes shut and expected to be hit. Instead he felt a concentrated pain on his forehead.

"Ow!"

"Why did you eat my ice cream?!" she demanded. When he only glared back at her she flicked him again.

"OW! That hurts!" He wined rubbing the spot. She grabbing his wrist and wrenched it away to flick him a third time but he relented.

"Ok, ok! My parents never let me eat desert or anything that tastes good because they say it's bad for me. Ice cream is my favorite," he muttered the last part without looking at her.

The girl smiled, "Why didn't you say so? Next time we can share." She got off of him and offered a hand up.

"My name's Maka, wanna play?" He eyed her hand suspiciously, and then he took it.


	5. Punk

**Author's note: **So this is a scenario in which Soul decided that he couldn't put up with upper class snobbery and decides to live on the streets. His parents aren't musicians, they're just wealthy in this one because it fit my purposes more. Basically I just wanted to write a piece where Soul was was totally BA ;) Reviews help me keep writing!

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><p><strong>Punk<strong>

The crooked alleyway was dark and far too peaceful before Soul decided to make it a little more lively. He took a knee to the stomach and an upper cut to the jaw. They thought he was down, but he kept coming faster and harder. He landed a particularly powerful right hook on one low life and nearly knocked him out.

His buddy called it quits and half dragged him away, "Come on man, lets get outta here. That dude's cracked!" The savage glee hadn't quite left the teenager's burning red eyes when he spotted a lanky figure staring at him past the scrambling figures of the retreating hoodlums. She would probably take off after the shock wore off. No- she was walking toward him! When she stepped into the shadows he was that she wore a white dress shirt and a red plaid skirt like she was walking home from a day of lessons at a private school. Was she insane? He didn't betray any emotion, but let her approach.

"That was an impressive fight," she said casually.

"Yeah? You my next challenger?" he said tensing his muscles to intimidate. She giggled.

"I'm not looking for a fight, and, no offense but you couldn't take me," there was just a hint of condescension in her voice. _WHAT? Alright, try this on for size, _he thought_._

"You sure about that?" he growled out producing dozens of blades all over his body. Her face registered shock, but not the right kind.

"You're a weapon!" So, she knew what he was. That explained a few things, but she still had balls of steal. "Listen, there's this school that teaches weapons like you how to hone their abilities and use it to keep humanity safe. You could fight people way more powerful than those guys," she jammed a thumb behind her.

His interest was peaked, "Really?" Soul wasn't sure what made him fain ignorance but his gut told him to go with it.

The girl grew visibly more excited, "I can take you there now and show you around if you like."

He shook an unruly mass of silver hair with incredulity, "Yeah, sure." This girl was something else. "So, are you a weapon too?"

"I'm a technician. That means I can wield a weapon if our wave lengths match. You cab learn about that in class though, it's a little complicated. I haven't found a weapon whose match is quiet right yet, so who knows! Maybe we'll become partners." He snorted loudly. She smacked him and he held up an arm defensively.

"Whoa! Easy there princess!"

"I'm top in my class, you'd be lucky to have me," she informed him with irritation. "My name is Maka by the way," she said as they walked. It was funny how innocent she looked in her uniform and blond pig tails, yet she had more guts than most of the cold hearted crooks he usually hung out with.

"Soul," he said shortly hunching into his black leather jacket.

"Soul . . ." she repeated thoughtfully. He waited for her to make fun of his nome or make a stupid comment.

"I like it."

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><p>After wandering through halls and up staircases, an walking into a few classrooms they made their way into a room much more grand than any of the others. "This is the room where the Shinigami hosts a ball for the students on special occasions. They're a pretty big deal," she said watching him. Soul only nodded. "You're not impressed?"<p>

He shrugged, "I've seen better." She thought he was kidding. He wasn't.

"You're not going to complain at the formality?"

He scoffed, "Complaining is for losers who don't want to deal with reality." Maka looked slightly impressed.

"So, you're just not going to say anything," she said.

"Why should I when I have nothing to say?" His eyes swept over the room. It really was spectacular, but the ballroom at his parent's place outstripped this one by miles. He froze up when he spotted a grand piano sitting in the corner.

Maka noticed, "Do you play?"

"No." She raised a skeptical eyebrow. Damn, he had answered too quickly. Soul ambled toward the instrument, passing under an proud chandelier that cast the room in a warm yellow light. Soul ran his fingers delicately across a few keys. "It reminds me of my parents too much." The technician looked like she was expecting an explanation but he wasn't going to give it to her. She sat down on the shiny bench herself with a silly little smile and began to poke out chopstick with two fingers. He dropped his face into an empty hand. "Nooo," he groaned. "I hate that stupid song." It couldn't be helped. Soul took a seat beside Maka and she scooted over to give him more room.

His hands hovered in position before he allowed instinct to take over and his fingers danced across the keys. She sat watching with wonderment and a small "wow" escaped from her lips. Soul smirked. He was just getting warmed up. The dexterity came back to his hands within seconds and he was weaving a master piece from thin air.

"Son?" a male voice called from the doorway. Soul's hand crashed onto the keys cutting the piece off with a sour chord. His parents hurried toward the pair of teenagers, Soul stood up like he was considering taking off.

"Soul, sweety, you're ok!" his mother ran over to him without a thought of preserving the dignity of her station since she was so obviously upper class. She bent over to cup his face in her hands with tears in her eyes. She had a kind face with soft silver curls tumbling over her shoulders.

"What are you doing here?" he said with disbelief in his voice.

"We began donating money to the school three years ago since the family business kept growing," his father explained as he followed the woman at a more measured pace.

"Yes!" his mom laughed weakly through her tears, "And Death-sama invited us over to see how our money has been put to use." He turned back to look at her face that was brimming with barley contained emotion and he softened.

"I'm sorry, I didn't greet you properly. Hello mother," Soul kissed his mother's cheek in affection and she broke and wrapped him in a tight hug, shaking slightly with silent tears. His chest suddenly felt tight.

"You don't visit us often enough son," the man in the double breasted suit said sternly but there was an almost imperceptible crack in his voice. When his mother released him and wiped her eyes his father clapped him on the shoulder.

"What have we here?" Death came gliding toward the family reunion.

"Death-sama, this is our son, Soul Eater."

"A healthy looking boy. Is he considering attending the school?"

"That's why we're confused sir, he doesn't have the gifts that this school cultivates," his father explained professionally. He hardly ever broke from his smooth business voice, as if he was born writing ledgers and attending meetings with other business tycoons. He always wore a black suit that matched his neatly combed black hair. The only thing that seemed out of place were his intense red eyes that his son had inherited.

"Um-" Maka spoke up uncertainly from her criss-crossed position on the piano bench. "Actually, out on the street I saw him- well I found out that he's a weapon, so I decided to show him around the school a bit." His parents both looked at him in surprise.

He shrugged, "I found out about a year ago."

"Good going Soul Eater Evans!" Death said holding out a giant blocky V for victory. "We would be more than happy to accept you should you decide to enroll." All of them turned to him, and he stepped back from all the expectations suddenly weighing his shoulders down again.

"But perhaps for now we should give the boy some room to finish his tour," Death suggested in a tone more serious than he was accustomed to using. His mother looked back at Soul with a small amount of desperation shining through her eyes.

"Hey," he said taking her hand. "I'll come around for dinner tonight, alright?"

"Our meal will be served at six o'clock as always. We'll tell the maids to set an extra place for you." His father began to leave with the shinigami.

His mother gave his hand a little squeeze and smiled at him, "You're playing is still beautiful Soul." He returned the smile with a crooked one of his own and she strode after the two men. The grand double doors creaked closed.

"Wait. So let me get this strait. Your parents are our biggest philanthropists but you live on the street?" Soul nodded in affirmation. "Well, no wonder you weren't impressed with all the grandiosity," she mumbled. "Why don't you live with them? It's obvious that you don't hate them and you can't be any older than I am."

"Excuse me, you're like ten-"

"Thirteen!"

"-and I am fifteen," he let out a breath slowly trying to decide if he wanted to explain it all to some girl he barely knew. For some reason opening up to her a little felt right. He sat down beside her again and played a little riff, concentrating on the keys instead of her face.

"My parents are kind of overbearing. They wanted me to do all this stuff, like take etiquette classes, teach me ballroom dancing, how to eat a meal with a million different utensils, they wanted to turn me into a socialite and a business man. They dragged me to dozens of different ivy league prep schools," he made a face. " My brother loved it all and he was perfect at it but I couldn't keep up. None of that's me. They weren't cruel about it or anything, that's just who they are and what they expected from me and my brother. I love them but I couldn't live that way anymore." He stopped his playing and looked up at the ceiling. "I'd rather wear baggy pants, stuff my face with my hands, and fight jerks for no good reason. They especially hated the fighting." He smirked at a memory, "One night I punched this asshole billionaire because he was hitting on my mom. You should have seen his face, it was priceless. Anyway, my parents and I couldn't stop arguing after that and I kept threatening to run off and never speak to them again. Eventually we all agreed that I should go out into the world and find my own way as long as I checked with them in once in a while."

"So you became a hoodlum for the hell of it?"

"Yeah, kinda."

"You're amazing, you know that?" Soul tilted his face to see Maka shaking her head in disbelief. She jerked her head up at a sudden realization, "You knew about weapons and techs the entire time, didn't you. And you let me ramble on like an IDIOT!"

Soul snorted loudly, "Just realized that did you?" He was introduced to his first Maka Chop via a deadly 365 page text book.

"OW!"


End file.
